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Rodolphus Lestrange - Blog Posts
Marauders Era Fancasts part 2
Petunia Dursley Freya Mavor
Rabastian Lestrange
Rodolphus Lestrange
Regulus Arcturus Black Timothee Chalemet
Bartemius Crouch jr Maxence Danet-Fauvel
Evan Rosier Hugh Laughton Scott and Evan Peters
Dorcas Meadowes Lovie Simone
Emmeline Vance Felicity Jones
Severus Snape Louie Garrel
Narcissa Black-Malfoy Anya Taylor-Joy
Bellatrix Black-Lestrange Katie Mcgrath
Andromeda Tonks Keira Knightley
Lucius Malfoy Harry Loyd
Pandora Lestrange Elle fanning and Hunter Schafer
Edward Tonks Sam Claflin
Xenophillius Lovegood Jamie Campbell
Walburga Black Eva Green
Orion Black Colin Firth
Cygnus Black Tom Hiddleston
Druella Black Michelle Pfeiffer
Walburga vs Tobias + Black Family Things
So I read this post, which inspired me to write this ramble.
When I write a fanfic, I always write Walburga to be the one with power in her and Orion's relationship, with her even sometimes going as far as to groom him (yuck!) because she's older than him by 4 years, so was maybe manipulative enough to convince him to marry her to keep things 'pure'. Walburga loved having power, and what other way could she have lordship unless it was through her husband? Taking it from him, even. Regardless of gender, there's a power dynamic. If Orion was 16, Walburga was probably 19-20. This goes against another headcanon I've made, but food for thought.
When I write Tobias it can get complicated, because I want more than just 'abusive dad'. There is the possibility that Tobias very much loved Severus, but they weren't on speaking terms because of the whole magic thing. I don't think we're even aware of the real reason they didn't get along. We can assume it was magic, but what if it was something else? What if Tobias occasionally got in trouble with the police? What if he was bad with money and the landlord was threatening to throw them out if they didn't find a solution? Maybe the biggest problem Tobias had with Eileen isn't the fact that she was a witch, but the fact that she presumably hid it from him? Deceived him? "If this is what you're hiding from me, what else are you hiding that I don't know about?" I also headcanon/believe that Severus was autistic, so maybe Tobias was really lost on how to communicate with him.
The Black Family Itself (Mostly headcanons)
I like to believe Sirius was raised to be a carbon copy of Walburga by Walburga herself, but she was too successful,which ended up back firing on her. He inherited all her rebellious traits because he was modelled after her. I like to believe Sirius' obsession with tormenting Severus started out of his own insecurities, but soon began to become a power thing. Sirius enjoys feeling power, at least I like to believe so.
Just because Sirius surrounded himself with 'mudbloods' doesn't mean his family's views on them magically disappeared from his mind. He could easily be keeping any rude comments to himself. He did maintain his friendship with James out of rebellion as well, not to say they weren't true friends.
I like to believe it was Pollux's side of the family that inherited the madness, and thus it spread to Sirius and Bellatrix. Both of them had to deal with the pressure of being the oldest, and being the face of their families, so they must always be ready. Always high strung, smug and confident. I think that Bellatrix was specifically married to Rodolphus because she was the strongest out of her siblings. The Lestranges didn't treat women well, so if it ever came down to it, Bellatrix would set Rodolphus straight before he could ever lay a hand on her. She's ruthless, and all too willing to go off the deep end if it means getting what she wants. She and Walburga have that in common.
Cygnus II having Bellatrix, Andromeda and Narcissa during his school years (+ Pollux having Walburga) actually sets up a tone for an interesting, yet messy story. The fandom dismissing it as Rowling getting her maths wrong is actually so boring, and they refuse to experiment with what's written in canon. If you guys are interested, I have experimented. (Not to be that person that advertises, but my name is CruelBritania on Ao3). I think Cygnus ended up being a little distant, but also involved with his daughters. He wanted to live his life freely, but also be there for his daughters. Being a teen dad is chaotic, and I guess his relationship with Druella was messy, because she kind of resented him for not being there enough. Cygnus isn't treated seriously because his parents had to help him raise his children. Even at an older age, he's immature. He never truly knows what to do, and always runs to his parents for help. Bellatrix was closest to her grandparents anyways, but Andromeda grew to resent his absence. Narcissa was a mommy's girl, so she didn't really care.
Regulus is the opposite of Sirius, which makes him an Orion copy. He doesn't rebel out of lack of control, but because he genuinely believes he should. That's why he died the way he did. Sirius was erratic, whilst Regulus was calm and collected. Regulus the embodiment of what a Black was supposed to present themselves as.
Arcturus didn't approve of the whole Voldemort thing, but Regulus was obedient to his mother. As I said, the Blacks loved power. Infiltrating the Death Eater circle was Bellatrix's and Narcissa's husband's job, not a heir's. He was suspicious of Voldemort, and what his intentions could be for the future of magical Britain. Being a descendant of Salazar Slytherin and speaking parseltongue doesn't make you special, it makes you worthy company.
The very second he learned Regulus took the mark, Arcturus knew it wasn't going to lead to anything good. He had to embrace that his family's long history was coming to an end. He watched as his family's influence became forgotten as The Boy Who Lived rose to fame. Magical Britain became more open to muggle influence.
I think the family having sexist views isn't too out of place, but I don't believe they were against the women having independence. For example, Elladora and Cassiopeia were unwed for their entire lives. The women of the family possibly acted like Genghis Khan's daughters, which is to get married to a prince and then send them off to war, while the daughter rules the kingdom in her husband's absence. In this case, infiltrate a family and spread their influence through their husband regarding their occupation. If I remember correctly, the Black family were known for being influential. The women were just as important as the men. Not enough to be heirs, but still very important.
I don't think the Black family took the Hogwarts house thing too seriously. Yeah, they were competitive, but at the end of the day, these are just traits that they valued. They still married into non Slytherin families if the surnames are anything to go by (Macmillan, Potter, ect.). When Sirius was sorted into Gryffindor he wasn't disowned for it, unlike Marius who got burnt off for being a squib. Who even knows if Marius was killed or given away? Phineas and Cygnus were brothers, so maybe Phineas ended up caring for Marius. Who knows?
I believe that not all of them had extreme views on muggles and muggleborns. Some of them preferred to be segregated, others didn't mind their presence so long as they remembered their roles in life, while a handful did believe in exterminating them. Racism comes in levels, after all. Bellatrix, Andromeda and Narcissa are classic examples of this, with Andromeda learning that her family's beliefs on muggles are ridiculous, and even going as far as to marry one. They were normal every day people, in a 1950s white power kind of way.
I headcanon that the hatred the Blacks had for muggles wasn't too bad until they started losing some family members to them (marriage, witch trials, ect.), and only then did their resentment for muggles become more prevalent. How is it that some family members were able to have enough empathy to fall in love with mudbloods and blood traitors? Support muggles? They have madness, but they're not all heartless.
Here are some of the headcanons I've made:
The Black Husbands: Headcanons
Rodolphus really didn't want to marry any of his cousins. It wasn't that they were unattractive, it was just that he was determined to find a wife himself. It wasn't against family values to force persuade someone into marriage, but no one was stupid enough to marry their daughters off to the Lestranges, knowing how they treated their women.
He liked to believe he knew what he was getting into when he saw Bellatrix wink at him that day. He liked to believe he was satisfied on their wedding day. He was certain to be content when she got her mark. They were kindred spirits.
They were on the same page, but Bellatrix was a Black through and through. Rodolphus hated to admit it, but Bellatrix outdid him in cruelty. Put him to shame.
He didn't think it was possible, but she became worse. She had been decently fine before, but after Azkaban not so much.
He had no clue what it was, but she was more insane. Not once seeing the curse that the mark ended up being. They could've done it by themselves, with no Dark Lord. No one to boss them around. No mark to expose them and ruin their lives.
They were both stuck, but Bellatrix thrived in being stuck.
Don't let this innocent, sweet face fool you. Ted knew a tad too much about danger and the like. No matter how well he dressed, Andromeda knew a rough boy when she saw one. She could relate to terrible parents, he could relate to pretending.
The countryside was a safe haven for them both. Perhaps a city would've been better, to avoid too many questions, with everyone around them being too busy with themselves to spare them a single glace, but the countryside was quiet. Besides, the location was one that would allow them easy access to all their magical needs.
Their daughter, would want more. Expressive as her clothes. Ted embraced whatever danger was ahead, even if he desperately wanted to run from it.
By far the biggest peacock- The biggest conniving, cold, cat-like man she's ever met.
He was perfect.
She and Lucius were very alike, in both how they presented themselves and their beliefs of course.
The only difference was that Narcissa wasn't supposed to be heard. She was raised to be someone's wife, and she made sure to be a great one. Lucius was so full of himself that he wouldn't be able to pick out his own ideas from her's.
This marriage wasn't out of the ambition of being married, but to outdo everyone in her family. Narcissa was determined to be the best. Lucius was determined to have the perfect family.
Draco wasn't the kind to be disowned. Narcissa wasn't the kind to go insane. Narcissa wasn't the kind to make a terrible spectacle of herself. Lucius knew his wife was cunning, those Slytherin traits of theirs went hand in hand. But then again, there was more mystery to her, he felt like. Perhaps it was a Black family trait, to not expose too much of yourself.